Wrapping
by Miss Peg
Summary: Jane is having trouble wrapping a present for Lisbon's birthday and when a case comes in, Van Pelt is forced to help him. One-shot.


Title: Wrapping  
Author: Miss Peg  
Disclaimer: I don't own The Mentalist *sobs uncontrollably*  
Notes: This is a random piece of writing written for MerriWyllow's birthday, it's a little late but I hope it's still enjoyable!

Jane sat at his desk in the attic, his fingers covered in sticky tape and paper scattered around the floor. He ripped the paper from the package once more and tossed it aside. Usually he was a good gift wrapper; he could fold paper as well as any origamist and had already created a small paper frog in place of a tag. The only trouble was, the gift wasn't shaped like a box, nor did he have a box of a suitable size to fit the object.

A tapping on the door pulled his attention away from the difficult task. Jane turned in his seat and slid the unwrapped gift into a paper bag, hiding it beneath the desk. Then he signalled for his visitor to enter, after all, he didn't want Lisbon to see what he'd bought for her birthday before she unwrapped it. Thankfully, it was Van Pelt who pushed the door aside and sent him a glowing smile. He eyed her glock resting against her hip and the jacket wrapped around her shoulders.

'You going out?' he asked.

'We've got a case,' she replied, not moving from the threshold. She looked somewhat expectant of what would happen next, but Jane didn't move.

'Where's Lisbon?'

'It's time sensitive,' she said, stepping forward. 'She's gone ahead with Cho and Rigsby.'

Jane rolled his eyes and sat back against his chair, Van Pelt's brow furrowed. She expected him to follow him as graciously as she followed Lisbon, and perhaps, had Lisbon called on him herself, he may have done as he was told.

'Let me guess, the Mayor's daughter's been killed?'

'The Governor's sister,' said Van Pelt, with a brief smirk. She knew as much as any of them how infuriating it was to have their time commandeered by someone in a position of authority. Their demands were higher, they expected perfection and very often, the SCU couldn't deliver exactly what they were after. They all knew the crime would probably be solved one way or another, that much was a given. But most cases were complex and demanded a lot of time. Something which the Mayor or the Governor or the Pope himself might not have appreciated. They wanted a job well done, but they always wanted it done quickly.

'Meh, close enough,' he said, shrugging his shoulders and turning back to his project. He pulled the paper bag out from under the desk and returned to his attempt at wrapping.

'We have to go,' Van Pelt said, her voice wavering as she tried to portray authority. He appreciated her attempts but it would take many more years and several more difficult life lessons before she would be ready to take on a position like Lisbon's and even then, Jane wasn't sure that Grace Van Pelt would ever have a heart hard enough to exhibit the authority needed for a lead agent.

'The Governor can wait half an hour.'

'I don't think he can.'

He spun his chair back around, his eyes softening at the young woman in front of him. She was trying her hardest and he simply wasn't playing ball, he knew that he could make the task easier but sometimes it was more fun to play games.

'I have to wrap this present for Lisbon,' he said, holding up the neatly painted porcelain chicken. 'Any idea how I should wrap something that isn't the shape of a DVD or as easy as a pony?'

Van Pelt laughed, the more pressing task momentarily vanished from the forefront of her mind as she stepped forwards and picked up the decorative item. She turned it around in her hands as an eyebrow peaked.

'You want to give Lisbon a chicken ornament?'

'It's the best I could do on the spur of the moment,' he said, hoping to keep the true aspect of the gift a secret until Lisbon herself knew the ins and outs of his surprise. He never took gift giving lightly, it was an important act of kindness from one friend to another and Lisbon was more important than most. He took the chicken from her hands and placed it in the centre of another piece of paper, folding it difficultly around the object.

'Move over,' Van Pelt said, waiting for him to vacate the chair before she sat down. Within five minutes she applied the final piece of tape and Jane stared at her in awe. Not only had she wrapped it well, but it looked more akin to a professional's attempt. He secured some tape to the underside of the origami frog and stuck it on top of the gift before taking a step back and admiring her handy work.

'Thank you, Grace, you're a life saver.'

He planted a brief kiss on her cheek and retrieved his jacket from the makeshift bed. When he reached the doorway, he turned to Van Pelt who was staring out of the window at the view.

'Come on Grace, we've got a criminal to catch.'

x

The next morning the team sat around the conference table with case notes and files. Lisbon began a speech on the importance of the job they had to do, the pressures from Bertram and most importantly, the Governor himself. Jane rolled his eyes impatiently waiting for her to stop talking so that they could interrupt their meeting for long enough to shower Lisbon with gifts.

'I'll go first,' he announced when Lisbon sat down.

'First with what?' said Lisbon.

'Giving you your birthday gift,' he said, handing over the chicken. He sent a small wink Van Pelt's way as Lisbon stared at Jane and groaned.

'We have a case, Jane, a very important case, or did you not listen to a word I just said?'

'I always listen to every word you say,' he said, sitting beside her and sliding the gift across the table. 'The Governor can't deny you five minutes to celebrate your birthday, now open.'

Lisbon rolled her eyes and did what she usually did, after all, if she had opted to argue then Jane would have merely badgered her until she'd given in. Once the wrapping had been removed - a lot faster than it had been added - Lisbon placed the chicken ornament on the table in front of them. She stared around at her colleagues and from what Jane could read, she was trying to understand the meaning of such a gift.

'Look at the bottom,' he said, tapping the table impatiently.

'O-kay,' said Lisbon, her eyebrows furrowed.

Once the slip of paper had been removed from the underside, Jane sent her his most dazzling smile, holding up the chicken ornament as he squawked. Lisbon smirked.

'What is it?' Van Pelt asked.

'A chicken,' said Lisbon.

The rest of the team looked at them confused, their eyes hovering over the porcelain animal.

'No,' said Lisbon, handing them the adoption certificate he'd fixed inside the object. 'An actual chicken.'


End file.
